Pocket lighter



May 20, 1941. w. E. EVANS 2,242,906

POCKET LIGHTER Filed Aug. 2s, 1939 Patented May 2Q, 1941 POCKET LIGHTER William E. Evans, Waterbury, Conn., assigner to The Waterbury Lock. Specialty Company, Milford, Conn., a'corporation of Connecticut y Application August 28, 19.39, Serial No. 291,993

(.Cl. (Y1-7.1)

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in pocket lighters and particularly to pocket lighters provided with a wick-burner ,for cigars -or cigarettes and a torch for lighting a pipe. 1

One object of the invention is to provide a pocket lighter in which the wick-burner and torch are both supplied with burning iluid from a single chamber. i f y Another object is to provide a reservoir or uid chamber open at its lower end to facilitate.

With the above and other vobjects in view, as

will appear to those skilled in the art from the v present disclosure, this invention includes all features in the said disclosure which are novel over the prior art;

In the accompanying drawing, in which certain modes of carrying out the present invention are shown for illustrative purposes:

Fig. l is a side view of a pocket lighter constructed in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the same Awith the cover open;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the torch detached; e

Fig. 5 is a broken sectional viewA of the burner end of the torch tube;

Fig. 61s a broken perspective view of the inner end of the torch tube;

Fig. '1 is a sectional view on the line Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a holding plug; and

AFig. 9 is a perspective view of the cover spring detached.

In carrying out my invention I employ a main reservoir I I closed at its upper end by a top plate I2 and a correspondingly shaped outer casing I3 closed at its lower end by a cap I4 which forms the bottom of thelighter. These members fit closely one Within the other but permit ,excess gas to escape between them. Mounted in the top plate is a tube I5 which receives a flint I6 and a spring I1 which is held in the'tube by a screw-plug I9. The iiint is forced by the spring against a friction-wheel I9 which is mounted between'l the walls 20 and 2I of a guard 22. In the topfplat'e a wick 23 is mounted in a collar lperspective view of a torch wick-- .form a burner or wick-burner. Also secured toA 24 around an opening 25 in the top plate I2 to the top plate is a spring 29 having an upward extension 21 and an inwardly-'extending lip 28. Pivoted to theguard 22 above the spring is a cover 29 carrying an extinguishing-cup 30 and adapted when closed to cover and extinguish the wick 23. 'I'he spring is formed with a clearanceslot 3| for the purpose as will hereinafter appear. Also mounted in the -cap is a torch-reservoir in the form of a torch-wick tube 32 which contains a wick 33 which terminates at its outer end short of the outer end of the tube which is closed by a cap 34 having a small perforation 35 to form(n a torch or torch-burner, leaving a gas chamber y 36 in the outer end of the torch tube. y

The wick extending through the torch-tube has its end 31 projecting beyond the inner end of the tube 32, which wick at that point is compressed and held by a plug 38 attened on one side. On the tube 32 is a tapered plug 39 which sets into a collar 40 struck inward from the top plate I2, the outer end of the tube 32 extending through the clearance-slot 3| in the spring 2li. It will be noted that the ends o f the wicks 23 and 33 both enter the main reservoir II so that both wicks are fed from the same source so that both the wick-burner and torch may be used as long as there is burning fluid In the reservoir. By inverting the reservoir it may be readily lled to the desired extent and the outer casing replaced;l thus avoiding the necessity of plug closed flllingfopenings in the reservoir. In use the wick-burner is lighted by turning the wheel I9 so as to throw a spark from the flint I6. Then if it is desired to use the torch, the lighter will be tilted and held so that the ame from the wick-burner willjimpinge against the outer end of the torch, with the result that the torch becomes heated, thus Vaporizing the liquid fuel in the end portion of the wick 33 in the torch and developing sufficient gas pressure to cause gas to issue from the opening 35," the issuing gas becoming vignited from the ame of the wick-burner and burning as a long flame which is directed in a downward direction and which is suitable for lighting a pipe. When in the closed position the lower edge of the rear end of the cover 29 impinges upon the lip28 oi' the spring so as to hold the cover in closed position, but when the cover is swung to open position it will lock on the-said lip and be heldin its open position as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

The plug 33 by mechanical pressure on the wick 33, effectively serves to prevent the'vaporized fluid or gas under pressure in the gas chamber 36 from passing out of the inner end of the said tube 32 into the main reservoir Il, without preventing the passage ofy fluid by capillary action from the reservoir Il through the wick 33 into thesaid tube, thus enabling pressure to be built up in the gas chamber 36 for expelling the gas or vaporized uidthrough the perforation 35 for the projection of a relatively elongated llame.

This construction avoids the overflowing of the main reservoir Il when being lled as it is open and is clearly visible tothe filler.

The invention may be carried out in other speciiic ways than those herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential charburner fed with fuel from said main reservoir; a

torch-reservoir of very small capacity compared to the capacity of said main reservoir and includacteristics of the invention, and' the present emy bodiments are, therefore, to be` 'considered in all respects as illustrative and n ot restrictive..and

all changes coming within. the meaning'and equivalency' range of the'appended claims are intended to beembraced therein.

1. A lighter comprising: a main reservoir; a

burner fed kwith fuel from said main reservoir; a torchrese'rvir including a torch adjacent said burner, whiclitorchis-adapted to be heated by the flame fromrsaid burner; said torch-reservoir having passageemeans communicating with said t ing a torch adjacent said burner, which torch is adapted to be heated by the ame' from said burner; said torch-reservoir having passage- -meanscommunicating with said main reservoir;

and vvwick-means constructed and arranged to automatically cause a supply of fuel to pass from said main reservoir to said torch-reservoir and to automatically prevent substantial leakage of fuel from said torch-reservoir back 'into 'said "main reservoir during foperation, of sai torch, whereby when said torch and fuel therein is heated, fluid pressure is developed in said torch which is substantially greaterl than the pressure in said-main reservoir.d l

3. Ar lightercomprising: a main reservoir; a burner fed with fuel from said main reservoir; a torch-reservoir formedl as a relatively long tube of relatively-small diameter and including a torch adjacent said burner,l which torch is adapted to be heated by the llame from said burner; .said torch-reservoir having passage meanscommunicating .with said main reservoir;

and wick-means 'extending from adjacent said passagemeans, along inside said torch-reservoir to a location adjacent the end of saidy torch, said wick-means having a portioninder mechanical pressure to permit capillary action to feed fuel from said main reservoir to said torch reservoir n and to prevent ysubstantial leakage of fuel from said torch-reservoir back into said main reservoir during operation of `said torch. whereby when said torch and fuel` therein is heated, uid pressure is developed in said torch which isv substantially greater than the pressure in said main reservoir. WILLIAM lil. EVANS. 

